Carl Crawford sprinkled in a couple 2-for-4 efforts in the Angels series last week (a series that the Red Sox swept four straight out in Anaheim), but he’s still struggling overall. He enters Friday’s game with a .160 batting average and just five extra-base hits this season.

Adrian Gonzalez, meanwhile, is beginning to heat up again. He clubbed two doubles as part of a 3-for-5 effort Thursday against the Orioles, and is now hitting .306 with 11 RBI.

Pitching Matchups For This Weekend’s Series:

The Red Sox will send a couple of starters (Daisuke Matsuzaka and John Lackey) coming off back-to-back dominant outings to the hill in the first two games of the series. Clay Buchholz, who has scuffled a bit as of late, will oppose reigning Cy Young award winner Felix Hernandez on Sunday afternoon.